Hearing instruments are electronic devices that provide signal processing functions such as noise reduction, amplification, and tone control. In many hearing assistance devices these and other functions can be programmably varied to fit the requirements of individual users.
Hearing assistance devices, such as hearing aids, include devices for use in the ear, in the ear canal, completely in the canal, and behind the ear. Such devices have been developed to ameliorate the effects of hearing losses in individuals. Hearing deficiencies can range from deafness to hearing losses where the individual has impairment responding to different frequencies of sound or to being able to differentiate sounds occurring simultaneously. The hearing assistance device in its most elementary form usually provides for auditory correction through the amplification and filtering of sound provided in the environment with the intent that the individual hears better than without the amplification.
Current hearing assistance devices provide a wide range of processing types and settings that may require extended interaction with the wearer and their environment to fine-tune (or customize) the device for the wearer. For example, the setting of single-microphone noise reduction parameters comprises a tradeoff between the amount of noise reduction and the amount of speech distortion. Different users of this technology use individual preferences for these variables, and preferences may vary under various acoustic surroundings. To customize a device, the dispenser of the hearing assistance device will either spend a significant amount of time assisting the wearer with fine-tuning, or the wearer is given a portable device to fine-tune the hearing assistance device on their own. The first method is unsatisfactory in that the fine-tuning may not be appropriate for the actual environments the users are typically exposed to, and because the process may take more time than is practical. The second method is unsatisfactory because the portable device may be cumbersome and intrusive or difficult to use while the wearer is attempting to fine-tune the hearing assistance device. These methods are also unsatisfactory in that, if the data associated with the fine-tuning are to be used by the device manufacturer to improve technology and its delivery, the burden of communicating this data must be shouldered by the dispenser.
Improved systems for customizing hearing assistance devices are needed.